Mariners Trade Lopez, Sign Bedard on Busy Night

The Seattle Mariners haven’t made many moves this season. They’ve been saving up for Thursday night.

In a series of moves just before baseball’s 9 p.m. deadline to offer contracts to arbitration-eligible players or lose them to free agency, the Mariners parted with two who’ve spent their careers with the organization — infielder Jose Lopez and pitcher Ryan Rowland-Smith.

The Mariners:

Traded Lopez to the Colorado Rockies for a minor league pitcher, ending a connection between Lopez and the Mariners organization that went back to 2001 when he was a 17-year-old.

Did not offer — or tender, in baseball terminology — a contract to Rowland-Smith, another who played with the AquaSox in 2002 and has been in the Mariners’ system since he turned pro. The Mariners offered Rowland-Smith a major league contract but he chose not to accept it, and the club decided to move on, general manager Jack Zduriencik said.

Tendered contracts to arbitration-eligible pitchers Jason Vargas, David Aardsma and Brandon League. They can negotiate contracts with the Mariners or choose to file for arbitration.

Avoided arbitration with infielder Josh Wilson by signing him to a one-year contract.

Signed pitcher Erik Bedard, who didn’t pitch in 2010 and has undergone three shoulder surgeries in his three seasons with the Mariners, to a one-year non-guaranteed contract for 2011.

Choosing to obtain something in return for Lopez rather than lose him outright to free agency by the non-tender deadline, the Mariners made a trade that yielded right-handed pitcher Chaz Roe from the Rockies organization.

“It just got down to where we were headed,” Zduriencik said. “We decided this was the right thing to do at this time.”

While there has been speculation that Chone Figgins may shift from second base and replace Lopez at third in 2011, Zduriencik wouldn’t give any clues. He said offseason acquisitions — particularly his work at the winter meetings next week in Orlando — will determine how the infield takes shape.

“There were spurts here where Jose was a nice player,” Zduriencik said. “You get to a point as you go through your ballclub, based on where you’re headed, when you decide what you can afford to keep and what you can’t afford to keep.”

Roe, the Rockies’ supplemental first-round draft pick in 2005, went 9-13 with a 5.98 earned run average this year with Class AAA Colorado Springs. He struck out 115 and walked 53 in 27 starts for the Sky Sox.

Lopez, an All-Star second baseman in 2006 when he batted a career-best .282, was moved to third base this year and, while he played sufficient defense, he suffered through his worst offensive season as a regular. He batted .239 with 10 home runs and 58 RBI and, on a team that emphasizes high on-base percentage, he posted a .270 figure that was his worst since his rookie big-league season in 2004.

“He’s a guy we’ve looked at for a long time,” Rockies assistant GM Bill Geivett told MLB.com. “We liked his versatility, and he’s a right-handed bat. He also has some power potential. That’s a pretty big ballpark in Seattle, and he’s played in a division with Oakland and Anaheim, and those parks are not easy to hit the ball out of. We think he can do well at Coors Field.”

The Mariners wanted to retain Rowland-Smith, Zduriencik said. When the 27-year-old rejected the deal, the Mariners chose to non-tender him, making him a free agent.

Rowland-Smith chose not to comment Thursday night. He can continue to negotiate with the Mariners, although Zduriencik expected Rowland-Smith to explore opportunities with other teams.

“We had or parameters set out,” Zduriencik said. “We talked about giving him a chance to come back and be part of the organization, but it would have to be on our terms. Ryan decided that our terms were not necessarily what his terms were, so we parted ways.”

Bedard’s non-guaranteed, incentive-filled deal is a low-risk move to the Mariners, who could cut him with an outlay of termination money if he doesn’t pitch well enough to make the team out of spring training.

“All the reports we have is that he’s ready to go,” Zduriencik said. “I felt that it was worth giving him a chance to come back here. It made a lot of sense that this is the right thing to do. If Erik Bedard is healthy, as he feels that he is and we hear that he is, then it will be an opportunity for him to compete for the rotation.”